The society appoints a new president annually to join the historic list of names below that dates back to 1847. The presidential term runs from January for twelve months. During their term, the president is entitled to wear the presidential jewel. After the inaugural address, he or she has traditionally been photographed seated in the 19th century presidential chair in the lecture hall.
In order to maintain a diverse programme of lectures we welcome applicants from all clinical specialities. Doctors (including current non-members) wishing to be considered for the office of president should discuss with the secretary, president or other members of council.
We are always keen to learn more about the lives of our former presidents. If you are conducting family history research, do please contact us with any biographical information or photographs.
| Presidential term | Name | Photo | Biography |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Mr Andrew Hobkirk (Consultant Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeon and OMFS) |  | |
| 2022 | Chakravarthi Rajkumar (Consultant stroke physician and professor of geriatrics and stroke medicine) |  | |
| 2021 | Christopher Liu OBE (Ophthalmologist) (n.b. president re-elected due to covid-19 pandemic) |  | |
| 2020 | Christopher Liu OBE (Ophthalmologist) | | |
| 2019 | Maxwell J F Cooper (General Practitioner) |  | |
| 2018 | Syed Waquar (Waquar Yusuf - Vascular surgeon) |  | |
| 2017 | Charles Zammit (Endocrine and Breast surgeon) |  | |
| 2016 | Margaret (Meg) Price (Dermatologist) |  | |
| 2015 | Ruth Barker (General Practitioner) |  | |
| 2014 | Alan Ireland (Gastroenterologist) |  | |
| 2013 | J Quin (Endocrinologist) |  | |
| 2012 | Richard Vincent (Cardiologist) |  | |
| 2011 | Mark Signy (Cardiologist Worthing hospital) |  | |
| 2010 | Robert Tranter (Ear, Nose and Throat surgeon) |  | |
| 2009 | Helen Smith (General Practitioner) |  | |
| 2008 | Bruce K Mcleod (Ophthalmologist) |  | |
| 2007 | Harry O Brunjes (GP Entrepreneur) |  | |
| 2006 | Varadarajan Kalidasan (Paediatric surgeon) |  | |
| 2005 | Paul A Farrands (Surgeon) | ||
| 2004 | Stephan E Tchamouroff (Genitourinary medicine) |  | |
| 2003 | Clive D Bach (General Practitioner) | ||
| 2002 | N Evans (Paediatrician) | ||
| 2001 | JRW (Bob) Gumpert (Vascular Surgeon) | ||
| 2000 | Chistopher Davidson (Cardiologist) |  | |
| 1999 | Luke Fernandes (Rheumatologist) |  | |
| 1998 | Anna C Haylett (General Practitioner) | ||
| 1997 | Douglas A Chamberlain CBE (Cardiologist) |  | |
| 1996 | Ray H Harper (General Practitioner) |  | |
| 1995 | Ian G Crossman (Orthodontics) |  | |
| 1994 | C Barry d'A Fearn (Orthopaedic surgeon) |  | |
| 1993 | Alec J M Frank (General Practitioner) |  | |
| 1992 | John E Rees (Neurologist) |  | |
| 1991 | Donald J Reid (Surgeon) | ||
| 1990 | D F Dart (General Practitioner) |  | |
| 1989 | Nigel H Porter (Surgeon) | ||
| 1988 | David V Ingram (Ophthalmologist) |  | |
| 1987 | R J Stuart Weir (General Practitioner) |  | |
| 1986 | W Nicholas (Nick) Laurence (Orthopaedic surgeon) |  | |
| 1985 | Bernard Crymble (Neurosurgeon Brighton and Haywards Heath) |  | |
| 1984 | Joanna Sheldon (Endocrinologist) |  | |
| 1983 | Euan C B Keat (Physician/Gastroentroenterologist) |  | |
| 1982 | Frederick R. Ryle (General Practitioner) | ||
| 1981 | Paul V Wadsworth (ENT) |  | |
| 1980 | Phillip G Somerville Surgeon (vascular) |  | |
| 1979 | N W A Harvey (General Practitioner) |  | |
| 1978 | K Whittle Martin (Urologist) | ||
| 1977 | Dr John K Wagstaff (General physician) |  | |
| 1976 | S. Patrick Hall-Smith (Dermatologist) |  | |
| 1975 | R J Keith Elliott (Pathology) |  | |
| 1974 | Constance L Beynon (Obstetrics and Gynaecology) |  | |
| 1973 | Henry Park (Surgeon) |  | |
| 1972 | Leslie W Lauste (Surgeon) |  | |
| 1971 | Rex A Binning (Anaesthetist) |  | |
| 1970 | L John Beynon (General Practitioner) |  | |
| 1969 | D Archdale Smith (General Practitioner) | ||
| 1968 | F J Kerr | ||
| 1967 | B A Fraser (Physician) | ||
| 1966 | F K Busterton | ||
| 1965 | R W Windle (Physician) | ||
| 1964 | K Kemball Price (Physician at Brighton and Lewes) | ||
| 1963 | D A Carew Hunt | ||
| 1962 | D C F L Williamson | ||
| 1961 | S D Firth (Medical Superintendent, Brighton General Hospital) | ||
| 1960 | K F Mackenzie (Obstetrics & gynaecology) | ||
| 1959 | C Barry Prowse (Physician) | ||
| 1958 | Vera E Claxton (General Practitioner) | ||
| 1957 | D Cumming | ||
| 1956 | J H Crawford | ||
| 1955 | H C K Eccles | ||
| 1954 | Gladys M Wauchope (Physician) | ||
| 1953 | G W Beresford | ||
| 1952 | C G Schurr (Ophthalmologist) | ||
| 1951 | Harold George Downer (Oto-rhino-laryngologist) | ||
| 1950 | J H Le Brasseur (General Practitioner) | ||
| 1949 | C Gibson | ||
| 1948 | Lilias M Jeffries (general practitioner and gynaecologist at the New Sussex Hospital in Brighton) | ||
| 1947 | J P S Walker | ||
| 1946 | H J McCurrich | ||
| 1945 | T S Allen | ||
| 1944 | F H Fuller | ||
| 1943 | J R Griffiths | ||
| 1942 | Alexander Hislop Hall (1892-1968; GP in Hove from 1923-1965) | ||
| 1941 | G W Beresford | ||
| 1940 | C D Scott (n.b. president re-elected due to outbreak of second world war) | ||
| 1939 | C D Scott | ||
| 1938 | J G Hayes (General Practitioner) and Douglas A Crow (n.b. at an extraordinary meeting of the council, Mr Douglas A. Crow was elected president to fill the vacancy by the death of Dr. J. G. Hayes) | ||
| 1937 | F W M Cunningham | ||
| 1936 | V R H Turton | ||
| 1935 | Harold F Seymour | ||
| 1934 | Florence M Edmonds | ||
| 1933 | A. Neville Cox | ||
| 1932 | A. Helen Boyle (General Practitioner and first woman president of the Royal College of Psychiatrists) | ||
| 1931 | Duncan Forbes (Public Health) | ||
| 1930 | H. Nethersole Fletcher | ||
| 1929 | W Barrington Prowse (Physician) | ||
| 1928 | A. Geoffrey Bate (Surgeon) | ||
| 1927 | Donald G Hall (Physician/GP) | ||
| 1926 | E. Rivaz Hunt | ||
| 1925 | Herbert J Walker | ||
| 1924 | Edward Forster Maynard | ||
| 1923 | Eliot Curwen | ||
| 1922 | Arthur Jaffray Hutchison | ||
| 1921 | David William Livingstone | ||
| 1920 | Hugh Stott | ||
| 1919 | Theodore Henry Ionides | ||
| 1919 | Leonard A Parry | ||
| 1918 | Samuel Bradley Figgis | ||
| 1917 | Walter Robert Wood | ||
| 1916 | Henry Gervis | ||
| 1915 | Arthur Herbert Buck | ||
| 1914 | Reginald John Ryle (Physician & Ophthalmologist) | ||
| 1913 | Walter Broadbent | ||
| 1912 | Edmund Hobhouse | ||
| 1910 | Frank Hinds | ||
| 1909 | Charles John Jacomb-Hood | ||
| 1908 | Reginald Francis Jowers | ||
| 1907 | Henry Herbert Taylor | ||
| 1906 | Wayland Charles Chaffey | ||
| 1905 | Sir Arthur Newsholme | ||
| 1904 | George Morgan | ||
| 1903 | James Turton | ||
| 1902 | J.F. Gordon Dill (Physician) | ||
| 1901 | Walter Samuel Simpson | ||
| 1900 | Frederick John Paley (General Practitioner) | ||
| 1899 | Robert Sanderson | ||
| 1898 | Robert Black | ||
| 1897 | Douglas William Giffard | ||
| 1896 | Alfred Scott | ||
| 1895 | John Caldwell Uhthoff | ||
| 1894 | T. Jenner Verrall (Surgeon) | ||
| 1893 | Sir Joseph Ewart JP | ||
| 1892 | Willoughby Furner | ||
| 1891 | Edward George Whittle | ||
| 1890 | Edward Mackey | ||
| 1889 | E. Cresswell Baber | ||
| 1888 | W.H. Nicholls | ||
| 1887 | F.W. Salzmann | ||
| 1886 | E. Noble Edwards | ||
| 1885 | Thomas Sprye Byass | ||
| 1884 | Charles J Oldham | ||
| 1883 | William Ainslie Hollis (Physician) | ||
| 1882 | John Harris Ross | ||
| 1881 | Joseph R Gasquet | ||
| 1880 | Nathaniel Paine Blaker | ||
| 1879 | Edward Francis Russell | ||
| 1878 | Crawford John Pocock | ||
| 1877 | Richard Patrick Burke Taaffe | ||
| 1876 | Henry Penfold | ||
| 1875 | Athol Archibald Johnstone | ||
| 1874 | Richard Branwell | ||
| 1873 | William Withers Moore | ||
| 1872 | George Browne | ||
| 1871 | John Jardine Murray | ||
| 1870 | Charles Izard Beard | ||
| 1869 | Henry Moon | ||
| 1868 | Charles Bryce | ||
| 1867 | Frederick Abell Humphry | ||
| 1866 | Alfred Hall | ||
| 1865 | George Frederick Hodgson | ||
| 1864 | William Verrall | ||
| 1863 | William Kebbell | ||
| 1862 | Samuel King Scott | ||
| 1861 | William Mellett Hollis | ||
| 1860 | George Lowdell | ||
| 1859 | Sir John Cordy Burrows (former Mayor of Brighton) | ||
| 1858 | James William Wilson | ||
| 1857 | Harry Mills Blaker | ||
| 1856 | George Tatham | ||
| 1855 | Edmund Joseph Furner | ||
| 1854 | James Oldham | ||
| 1853 | Edward Latham Ormerod | ||
| 1852 | John Lawrence (Junior) and John Lawrence | ||
| 1851 | James Annesley Hingleston | ||
| 1850 | Thomas Bradbury Winter | ||
| 1849 | George Samuel Jenks | ||
| 1848 | Benjamin Vallance | ||
| 1847 | William King |